Why We Get Mad
by UberVenkman
Summary: As far as Janey knew, Athena never took another bounty job after saving Elpis, and that was the way Athena liked it. But nothing was going to stop a certain sheriff from spilling the beans... A sequel to the Pre-Sequel and a midquel to the Sequel. And a prequel to the adventure game. Hey, I covered all three bases.
1. The Routine

**So, this is sort of a follow-up to my previous _Borderlands_ story, _The Last Job_. There's some overlap between the two stories, but you could easily read this without reading the other. This one's gonna be longer than that story, but still considerably short: four chapters, plus one epilogue.  
**

* * *

Athena sat on the barstool, staring at the dregs of the strong liquor she had ordered. Her Atlas training built up her stamina to the point where she could not get drunk without consuming an insanely large amount of alcohol, say, a barrelful of vodka.

"Another," she said to the bartender, who had just handed her a plate of skag tenders.

"You sure?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "That's the fifth one tonight."

"Just do it."

"You know this stuff's strong enough to kill a Rakk Hive, right?"

Athena flashed a dark glare at the bartender.

He jumped slightly. "Uh…coming right up."

Athena picked up her drink and let the last bits of it run down the side of the cup and into her gullet. Savoring the taste for a moment, she picked up a skag tender and took a large bite out of it just as the bartender returned with her drink.

"The eating and drinking habits of Atlas assassins are beyond my understanding," he said, stepping back.

Athena swallowed. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I never thought of Crimson Lance folks liking fried food."

Athena put down the tender. "At Atlas, all they ever gave us were the standard rations," she said pointedly. "We never had anything but water and the food bars. We get to Pandora and start taking over towns, we also start eating Pandoran food." She leaned back slightly. "Some call this stuff unhealthy, I call it fine cuisine." She dropped the rest of the tender in her mouth for dramatic effect.

"To each their own," the bartender nodded. "Enjoy your meal."

Athena took a swig out of her drink. Sometimes she wondered how everyday Pandorans enjoyed their alcohol. One guy had just downed a shot of vodka and was in the process of banging his head against a table. Some woman was leaning against a chair, feet on the table, casually drinking from her beer bottle and occasionally giving Athena a seductive glare, one Athena was not interested in returning.

She looked at her watch. 7:40. It was almost time for her to go.

Suddenly, a fellow in a tan hat and a blue shirt began wheezing and screaming. He slammed a fist against the table, apparently trying to cool himself off. His hair caught fire, then his clothes, then his flesh.

Athena turned to the bartender. "What's killing him?"

The bartender watched as the man in the tan hat disintegrated into a pile of ash. Pursing his lips thoughtfully, he pointed at Athena's drink. "He decided to have what you were having."

Athena stared at her drink. "I…glass of water, please?"

"Coming right up," the bartender said. As he began pouring the new drink, he picked up the phone to the kitchen. "Hey, I'm gonna need a broom for Table 4? Someone ordered the Rakk Lava Cocktail."

_"Ah geez, again?"_

* * *

Janey came home fully expecting to find the house empty, with a note on the coffee table saying Athena would be out for the evening, probably to drink or to go for a walk, or maybe to do whatever odd jobs she could find.

Sure enough, such a note sat in its usual spot, held down by an old grenade they had lying around. This time, it said something about her going out for a drink, and that Janey shouldn't bother joining because she'd be back at exactly 8.

Janey read the note and sighed, before heading to the kitchenette to boil a cup of tea.

Ever since they'd moved to Hollow Point, Athena had become markedly distant. On the rare occasions where she stayed home for dinner, she would sometimes toss around whatever had been prepared with her fork, only taking a bite occasionally. Janey would bring up some topic of conversation, like a humorous death that had happened at work, or stories Scooter sometimes shared with her. Athena would nod and share some dull story about what she did that day, but with obvious disinterest.

Janey suspected Athena's distance was due to her missing her old days as a Lance assassin. People didn't just forget what they were bred to do. There would always be that itch to go back to the way things were.

The thing was, Janey didn't believe any of Athena's dull stories about where she'd been. Scooter had made sure of that.

* * *

"Really?" he had asked one morning. "You really believe she went on down to the bookstore and read somethin'?"

"Obviously not," Springs replied hesitantly.

"She's hidin' something from you, gal," Scooter said, widening his eyes. "I dunno, maybe she cheatin' on you?"

"I thought about that," Janey shrugged. "But it doesn't sound like her. I mean, don't get me wrong, she has betrayed folks before, but…I doubt she'd go that far."

"She was a bounty hunter, maybe she's off and collecting bounties," Scooter shrugged. "Ever notice anythin' weird in your paperwork?"

Janey thought about it. There _had_ been a bit of an inconsistency a few years back, when they'd first moved to Hollow Point. But after that, nothing.

* * *

Janey was still deep in thought about Athena's frequent absences when she heard a loud knock on the door.

_It's 7:45_, she wondered as she put down the mug she had just retrieved from the cupboard. _She never comes home early. She's always on the dot._

Per Pandora custom (it was a hell of a lot more dangerous than Elpis), she grabbed a shotgun from off the rack, armed it, then swung the door open.

Standing there was a slender woman in a black overcoat, a large black hat, and a pistol, still in its holster.

"Nice gun you got there. How ya doin', Springs?" she asked with a wide smile.

Janey lowered her gun. "The Sheriff of Lynchwood?"

"Hey now, Janey, I know there are stories of me killing anyone who calls me by my real name, and I'd like to let you know those stories are true, but we're friends, right? Just call me Nisha."

"Uh…Nisha, hello." Janey looked around, puzzled. "What a surprise. Umm…what are you doing here?"

"Well, truth be told, I was looking for Athena," Nisha admitted. "She in today?"

"She's gone out for a bit, but she should be back in…" Janey looked over at the clock. "Fourteen minutes and 33 seconds?"

Nisha blinked. "To the second?"

"If she isn't delayed, sure," Janey nodded. "Would you like to come in while you wait? I was 'bout to pour myself a cuppa, I can make one for you, too."

Nisha smiled. "That would be nice, thank you."

Janey opened the door wider and stepped aside as the lawbringer entered the threshold. "Just wondering…what was it you wanted to talk to Athena about?"

Nisha adjusted the gun in her holster. She had a feeling she would be needing it soon. "Oh, just…business."


	2. The Revelation

Janey sat down at the table with her own cup. "So, what's on with you?" she asked.

"Well, I've been poking around," Nisha replied, shrugging. "Hooked up with Jack, killed hundreds of bandits, murdered puppies…oh, I'm the Sheriff of Lynchwood, now."

"Oh yeah, Athena told me about that. Can I see your badge?"

"Right here," Nisha said, showing off the shiny object. "100% bronze."

"That's a real beauty," Janey nodded. "I'd kill for something like that."

"Well, don't kill me," Nisha joked. "That might not turn out well."

Janey laughed. "So, what brings you to our humble abode?"

Nisha suppressed a grimace she had felt after taking a sip of the tea. "Well, to talk to Athena, mainly…I'm sorry, when will she be back, you said?"

"8 o'clock on the dot. She refuses to ever be late. She's loyal like that."

* * *

Athena went up to the newsstand. She reached into her pockets and handed the attendant a small bill before grabbing a paper from the top of the pile.

"You should watch your back, gladiator," he said.

Athena looked up from her paper. "Excuse me? Are you threatening me?"

"Oh, not at all," the attendant said quickly. "It's just that…well, see for yourself."

Athena looked at the headline. "Hyperion-Hired Vault Hunters Brainwashed by the Crimson Raiders Into Joining the Insurrectionist Fight for Pandora, Because They Suck And Hate Us For No Reason, Never Mind That I Tried To Have Them Killed On Their Way Here, And Then Tried To Bomb A Town With Them In It."

The image showed six figures, unknown to her. But next to them stood four people she was not too pleased to see again.

"Ah fuck," Athena muttered as she stared at Lilith's image.

"I know you've had a little bad history with them," the attendant observed. "But judging by the length of that article title, they pose a serious threat to Handsome Jack's rule. Feel like backing them?"

Athena put down the paper. "I back no cause…only my own."

"Really? Then what is it you're always doing for money?"

Athena closed her eyes. "I am going to count to three, and then I'll open my eyes, and if I still see you standing there, I will cut you open and string your intestines between these two buildings, leaving you hanging like a clothesline above the street. One…"

"Hey, wait a—"

"Two…"

"I was just—"

"Three." Athena opened her eyes. She caught a glimpse of the attendant screaming for his life down the street.

Rather than make good on her promise of violent action, she laughed and went on her way.

* * *

"I admire that loyalty," Nisha muttered. "She still in the bounty hunting business?"

"Oh, not at all!" Janey exclaimed. "I made her swear it off after you opened the Vault on Elpis. She hasn't taken a single bounty job since."

"Well that's—" Nisha stopped. _Holy shit, the assassin hasn't told her girlfriend_.

"Are you alright?" Janey asked, concerned.

"What?"

"You just sort of jolted there for a moment."

"It's…nothing. Got a kind of chill there. So, I hear you're working at Scooter's."

"Yes, he has me run the place while he's out." She leaned forward. "Confidentially, he hasn't been back at the Hollow Point location in a month. He says he has some…business to work with. Don't know where he is."

Nisha nodded. "Last I heard he was working in Sanctuary. You know, where the Vault Hunters were."

Janey tilted her head. "Vault Hunters?"

"Oh, didn't you hear? Couple of new Vault Hunters came here. Jack tried to kill 'em, but somehow they survived. Apparently that stupid Claptrap unit Athena and me worked with dug them out of the wreckage. Now those Crimson Raiders people in Sanctuary have recruited them for their cause. Last I heard, they were roaming around the planet, scheming to kill Jack."

"Huh," Janey said. "Well, I suppose that means bad news for your boyfriend."

Nisha put her cup down. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about, actually."

"Pardon?"

Nisha leaned forward. "Don't tell anyone I said this, but Jack doesn't stand a chance with these new Vault Hunters. They've got a fucking Siren on their side, and don't get me started on the crazy teenager with the robot. He thinks he can eliminate the threat by getting his old Vault Hunting team back together." She paused. "Well, except, Wilhelm, god rest his mechanical soul."

Now it was Janey's turn to put down her cup. "Why did you come here, Nisha?" she asked, sounding less than pleased.

Nisha leaned back in her chair. "Jack wants Athena working for him again. He thinks with her on his side, he stands a chance of defeating those Vault Hunters. So I'm here to convince Athena to join us."

"She's not interested," Janey said firmly.

"Ah, but wait 'til I show you how much he'd pay her."

Nisha pulled out an ECHO log and was about to show the number when Janey slapped the device right out of her hand.

"Now, Janey…" Nisha said, pouting her lips in a condescending manner. "Don't pretend you don't have financial troubles. Living in a dump like this? Not exactly the practice of someone rolling in cash."

"I don't care," Janey replied. "Athena has seen the kind of man Jack is. She would never take another job from him."

Nisha stared at Janey, thinking.

"And don't think I don't know about New Haven, Nisha. All those people…killed just because they supported the old Vault Hunters."

"They threatened Jack's plans."

"Jack's plans were bogus. Athena's only job with Jack was to open the Vault on Elpis. That's all she did, that's all she'll ever do."

Nisha began rapping her knuckles on the table. "You'd love to believe that, wouldn't you?"

Janey hesitated. "What do you mean?"

"All this…this house, this town, the bills…all supported by a mechanic, her girlfriend working odd jobs in the neighborhood. And the Gladiator didn't do a thing after working for Jack."

Janey sat there, unsure of what to say.

"I'm sorry I have to tell you this, Springs," Nisha sighed as she leaned into the table. "I truly am. You're a good friend, though, so I think you need to know this." She leaned forward even more. _"Athena lied to you."_

* * *

Athena crossed by an alleyway, sheathing and unsheathing her sword every once and a while. But something she spotted in the corner of her eye made her stop.

Stepping back, she saw what appeared to be a bandit lying face-down in a pool of his own blood. Not an uncommon occurrence.

But the bullet wound indicated he'd been shot in the back, apparently walking out of this alleyway.

It was possible someone had gotten the drop on him as he was walking through, except the alleyway was a dead end. More likely, he had gone into the alleyway to talk to someone, then started to walk away, only to be shot in the back.

An act of someone who wanted to have fun while killing.

Only one wound. It would take an expert gunsman or gunswoman or guns-inbetween or guns-out-of-the-gender-binary to do this sort of thing.

She looked at the ground. There were footprints: footprints like those of a cowboy boot.

"Nisha," Athena muttered.

Why should the Sheriff of Lynchwood, not to mention Handsome Jack's girlfriend, come to Hollow Point?

Suddenly, Athena realized Janey would have gotten home by now.

"Shit!" she whispered as she jumped up and started running for their house.

* * *

"...and all those Claptraps exploding in a blast of screams and wires. Most satisfying thing I've ever seen. And your girlfriend helped do all that."

Janey took a deep breath. "You're lying," she said quietly.

"Really?" Nisha asked. "Didn't you notice an unusual jump in your finances a few months after you moved here?"

Janey's silence was all the answer the Sheriff of Lynchwood needed.

"You've suspected this for a while, haven't you, Springs? Makes you wonder…what else has she lied to you about?"

Janey remained silent.

"What if she's done bounty jobs behind your back? Who has she killed in the name of money? Why should you still support her?"

After a pause, Janey finally spoke up. "Well, what if she did?"

Nisha was surprised. "Excuse me?"

Janey still sounded upset, but her speech was more grounded. "You said it yourself: we needed money. Anything she did would have been in the name of supporting us. What we have."

"But…she _lied_ to you."

"So did you."

"What?"

"Do you seriously think I would move to Pandora and not know about what happened in New Haven?"

Nisha tapped her fingers on the table. "So she really wouldn't work with Jack ever again, no matter what?"

"Be sure of it."

Nisha pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Well," she said, casually pulling out her pistol and pointing it right at Janey's face. "Perhaps I can…force her hand."


	3. The Reunion

Janey stared down the gun barrel. "I see you've got a new model," she said nervously.

"Janey Springs, you are charged with obstructing justice," Nisha barked. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, well, then too bad. You're gonna obey every thing I tell you, and you can't do a thing to stop me from bringing Athena. Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you?"

"Nisha, she's going to be back any minute now."

"I guarantee it," Nisha replied. "And she'll find her girlfriend held at gunpoint, so she'll take any demand given to her. I repeat, do you understand these rights as they have been read to you?"

Janey blinked. "What if I don't, Nisha?"

"Well then I guess I have to kill you."

There was a long silence.

Then, to Nisha's bewilderment, Janey laughed. "Well, don't kill me," she mocked. "That might not turn out well."

Before Nisha had time to realize something was up, Janey let out a whoop and kicked the table upwards and jolted herself and her chair backwards, narrowly avoiding the shot fired by the surprised Lawbringer, who was thrown onto the ground by the force of the table.

"Where'd you learn a move like that?" Nisha asked as she stood up.

Janey looked to the wall and grabbed an assault rifle Athena had left hanging.

"Athena whispers in her sleep," she shrugged. And she opened fire.

* * *

Athena stumbled down the alleyway. _Shit, shit, shit—FUCK!_

She finally managed to slow down in front of the house. Finding the door locked, she ignored the key in her pocket and punched it right out of its frame.

* * *

Something was wrong. The kitchen table was lying on top of the counter, and a chair had been toppled over. Lining the walls were various spatters of blood, along with bullet holes across the plaster.

Pulling out Xiphos, Athena cautiously took a step forward. The floorboard creaked with the weight of her foot.

Suddenly, something jumped up from behind a couch and opened fire with an assault rifle. Athena quickly raised her shield, blocking every bullet, absorbing the damage in the process.

She prepared to throw it at the villain, but stopped herself. "Janey?"

Janey lowered her gun. Her arm had been grazed, and her bandana had been abandoned at some point. "Oh, hey, hon!" she said in a strangely cheerful tone. "How was your walk?"

"It was…good," Athena said slowly, now unsure of what to do with her shield. "Umm…what happened here?"

"Oh, it's questions, isn't it?" Janey asked. "That's a lot coming from someone who **LIED TO THEIR GIRLFRIEND**!"

Athena's jaw dropped, then quickly went back up. "I…I didn't lie to my—"

"Look at me, I'm Athena!" Janey said in a bad American accent. "I take bounty jobs from Handsome Jack and I lie to my g—ON YOUR LEFT!"

Athena threw Aspis at the figure that had jumped up from behind another couch. It landed right on target, sending Nisha through the air and against the wall, leaving a dent. The Sheriff of Lynchwood recovered quickly, pushing herself off the ground with a kick.

Athena pulled out a pistol, and Nisha did the same, leading to an old-fashioned standoff.

"What are you doing in Hollow Point, Sheriff?" Athena asked darkly.

"Oh, I just enjoyed the real estate," Nisha replied, rolling her eyes. "What do you think I'm doing here?"

"She's here to recruit you," Janey piped up. "To ally with Handsome Jack. To defeat the new Vault Hunters."

"He would want me for that, wouldn't he?" Athena asked sarcastically.

"He's offering a hefty sum," Nisha continued.

Athena snorted. "We established this after Elpis: I'm never taking another job from him."

Janey made a loud "harrumph" noise.

"Yeah, Athena?" Nisha mocked. "She knows."

_"What?"_

"About that little business we did involving a certain annoying robot."

"Lawbringer here told me," Janey said. "Then she tried to hold me as a hostage to make you go with her, but I just kicked the table into her face, grabbed one of the assault rifles you have on the wall, and started shooting at her."

"Springs here has more strength on her than I thought," Nisha agreed. "Truly impressive. So what do you say, Athena? I know you're not financially stable."

"I've sworn off all work with Jack," Athena repeated. "Permanently. I'm responsible for the deaths of too many innocent people."

"You mean those stupid helper robots?"

"The scientists on Helios, the Dahl soldiers, the Guardians of the Vault…even those annoying robots."

"Oh my god, wake up, gladiator!" Nisha laughed. "This is Pandora! No one's innocent of anything! I'm sure as Sheriff of Lynchwood I've unleashed my iron justice on a few people who committed no crime in the eyes of the law."

"From what I've heard of Lynchwood, you _are_ the law," Athena replied. "And they say you're not a soldier of justice: you're just a woman who likes to shoot people."

Nisha rolled her eyes. "Potato, potahto, Athena. Now, what shall we do about this stand-off?"

"It's not going to end until someone pulls the trigger," Athena replied.

Nisha laughed. "You're not going to shoot me, Athena. You don't want to get on Jack's nerves. You might end up like the Meriff."

Athena smirked. "Maybe you're right," she shrugged. "But after all we've been through: as allies on Elpis, fighting bandits and guardians alike…are you going to shoot me?"

Nisha hesitated. "Athena…the Vault Hunters are headed for Lynchwood in a few hours. Jack wants me to try to kill them."

"And you know you're not going to succeed," Athena concluded.

"I'm not an idiot," Nisha nodded. "I know when I'm outmatched."

"If you're smart enough for that, perhaps you're smart enough to know when you've gone a step too far."

Nisha looked at Springs. Finally, with a long sigh, she put down her pistol.

"You're a Lance Assassin, Athena. Don't pretend you haven't killed hundreds for someone else's benefit."

Janey raised her gun. "Get out of our house."

Nisha shook her head as she made her way for the door.

"You know," Athena called out. "One can only kill so many innocent people before they start to grow a conscience about it."

Nisha paused in the doorframe. Athena wasn't sure what the Sheriff of Lynchwood was thinking.

"Whatever happens Janey, just remember this," Nisha said. "She lied to you."

And then she was gone, never to be seen again alive.

* * *

Athena and Janey stood there, unsure of what to do next.

Finally, Athena lowered her gun and walked over to Janey, placing a hand over the mechanic's cheek. "Are you okay?"

Janey brushed the hand away. "I'm fine," she said. "I see you broke the door." She grabbed a wrench from her toolbox and ran over to the threshold, readjusting the broken hinges like clockwork.

"Sorry I didn't get back sooner," Athena said, watching her girlfriend carrying the door back to its frame.

Janey sighed, avoiding Athena's gaze. "There was no way you could've known she'd be here."

"Yeah," Athena replied. She looked at the damage leftover from Janey's fight with Nisha. Jesus, this was going to be difficult to clean up. "I'm just glad you're okay."

Janey stopped what she was doing. "Athena, where were you tonight?"

"What?"

"You said in that note that you would be at the bar. Were you really?"

"Janey, I wasn't lying about that." Athena protested.

"How do I know? How do I know you weren't out there, slaughtering bandits just to get a hold of five dollars?"

"Janey—"

"How do I know you weren't kidnapping someone and bringing them to some loan shark?"

"Janey—!"

"How do I know you didn't assassinate someone in their sleep, all for a quick buck?"

"Because I would never lie to you!"

"How can I know that, Athena?!" Janey shouted. "How can I trust you after all that just happened?"

Athena could find no words to respond.

Janey sighed. "I can't do this anymore." She stormed away from the door, past Athena, and into their bedroom, slamming and locking the door behind her.

"For the love of…" Athena ran up to the door and banged on the wood. "Janey, come out of there!"

"I'll stay here!" Janey shouted. "It'll just be like Serenity's Waste…I'll lock myself in here from the outside world and let myself grow old and looney!"

"You're gonna have to come out to the kitchen for food sometimes," Athena replied.

Pause.

"Well, then I'll just starve, won't I?"

"Janey, let me in!"

"No!"

"Janey, I need to talk to you!"

"Why should I listen? What if everything you say is a lie?"

"You're the world's greatest kraggon slayer and the best children's book author in the world."

Pause.

"Oh fuck you, everyone knows that's true!"

"Janey!"

"I don't ever want to see your face again, do you hear me? Never!"

"Well now you're just being melodramatic!"

"Don't tell me how I should feel!"

Athena kicked the door. "Dammit!" She leaned against a wall. Why couldn't she have gotten home sooner? Before Nisha spilled the beans on everything.

Then again, that wouldn't have happened, either, if she hadn't lied to Janey in the first place.

Well, now she was stuck in a moral quandary.

Athena slid down to the floor. She had a feeling it was going to be a long night of pondering her life decisions up to that point.


	4. The Reconciliation

In the middle of the night, Janey was awoken by a loud _boing_ noise.

_Strange noise for an intruder,_ she thought. She reached to her side out of instinct to jolt Athena awake, but quickly remember she'd locked the Lance Assassin out of the bedroom.

Pushing herself out of bed, Janey unlocked the bedroom door and stood in the frame. Sitting on the floor, leaned against the wall, was Athena, who was bouncing an old grenade, the same one she had used to leave the note from that evening, up and down.

The Gladiator looked up and gave the kind of look a deer about to be run over by a car would have. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

Janey said nothing. She just stared at Athena.

"I've had time to think these past six hours," Athena piped up. "And I thought, well…if you want me to leave, that'd be fine."

Janey shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

"Unless you want me to stay," Athena said quickly. She squinted. "It's just…I'm not sure if you can…well..."

Janey let loose her shoulders, then got down on the floor next to Athena.

"As angry as I am, I can't shake off the fact you've been on the floor all night," Springs sighed. "But I'm not letting you back into the bedroom until you plead your case."

Athena fumbled with the grenade, and didn't respond.

"Why did you take the job?" Janey asked.

Athena did not give a vocal answer, but she raised a finger and began waving it around in circles, indicating the house they were in.

"Athena, I have a _job_. I can support us."

"The both of us?" Athena said with a sarcastic chuckle. "Let's be honest here: Scooter's pretty cheap."

"You could've said 'no.'"

Athena looked at Springs. "Janey, it was Hyperion money. They throw that stuff around like bandits throw tomahawks. What's chump change to them is a fortune for us."

"You know what you told me when we got off that rocket and got on the bus to Hollow Point? You said, 'I'm through with this bounty business. I want to live a normal life, and there's no one else I'd rather spend it with than you.'"

"Then you said I had to promise I wouldn't take another bounty job."

"And look where that got you."

Athena tossed the grenade away. "I fucked up, okay?" she admitted. "And now you're mad that I took that—"

Janey quickly interrupted. "That's not what I'm mad about."

Athena stared at her. "What?"

Janey scooted closer to Athena and took both her hands. "Of course we couldn't survive on Scooter's money. I knew full well at some point you were going to have to go back to the bounties. But I figured you were going to ask me about it." She leaned in. "And even then I knew you'd off and done it after I noticed a jump in our finances. I'm not angry with you for taking that job, Athena, I'm angry that you never told me about it."

Athena was quiet.

"Do you understand?"

"I'm sorry I hurt you," Athena said honestly.

"Athena..."

"I'm serious. I like what we have here." Athena's gripped Janey's hands tightly. "We Lance Assassins never had time for…personal relationships. After Jess died, I lost all hope of finding someone I could relate to, someone I could confide in." She bit her lip. "And then you pulled me out of that Moon Shot canister and somehow…Janey..." She took a deep breath. "I don't want to lose you."

"Athena, my first girlfriend was torn to death right in front of me by a pack of Kraggons. I made plenty of other tries afterwards, but you were the only one I really clicked with. I don't want to lose you, either."

For the first time in the conversation, Athena smiled.

Janey leaned forward and gently kissed the Gladiator on the lips. "Come to bed," she whispered. "You need the rest."

* * *

After removing her armor, Athena crawled into bed next to Janey. But instead of taking the spooning position they were accustomed to (Janey was the big spoon), Athena kept to her side.

Janey started to make a move to take the position, but quickly stopped after noticing Athena was staring up at the ceiling.

They stayed this way, separated, for what seemed like an eternity. Finally…

"Look," Janey sighed. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm not as mad as I was this evening."

"I fucked up," Athena said to the ceiling.

"We've established that."

"I should get out of this bed, walk out the door, and never come back."

"In a sports bra and sweat pants? That might get you some unwanted attention."

"I betrayed your trust. I shouldn't even be here."

"Oh for fuck's s—come here."

Janey pulled Athena over to her side of the bed and put her arms around the Gladiator.

"I'll never lie to you again."

"That's too much to ask, 'thena. Everyone lies, it's human nature. But I'm asking you, _please_ don't take another bounty job. We can pull through this without having to cause so much more damage."

Athena gave herself a moment to think about this. "I promise," she said finally.

For a moment they simply lay there together. Athena could feel every breath, every movement the mechanic from Elpis made. It was comforting, having someone so close, someone who cared.

"Athena, where were you tonight?"

Athena looked at Springs. "What?" She'd heard every word, she was just surprised Janey was asking this question again.

"Before Nisha's little failed hostage attempt, where were you?"

"I went to the bar to get a drink."

"Is that all you did?"

* * *

_Athena took a swig out of her drink. Sometimes she wondered how everyday Pandorans enjoyed their alcohol. One guy had just downed a shot of vodka and was in the process of banging his head against a table. Some woman was leaning against a chair, feet on the table, casually drinking from her beer bottle and occasionally giving Athena a seductive glare, one Athena was not interested in returning._

_She looked at her watch. 7:40. It was almost time for her to go._

_The bartender looked at her. "Hey, uh, I know this is Pandora, but you know my policy: I really don't like it when customers take their guns out."_

_"Why? I have a right to bear arms."_

_"Well, sure, but it's just that things get a little…messy."_

_Athena shrugged as she reloaded the clip. "I'm a Lance Assassin," she said. "I don't do 'messy.' Our philosophy was to make a quick, clean kill." She ejected herself from her barstool, whirled around, and fired off a single incendiary shot at the man in the tan hat and blue shirt. The man screamed. His hair caught fire, then his clothes, then his flesh._

_"You've got a very slim definition of 'clean,'" the bartender said ruefully as he watched the man crumple to a pile of ash. He looked at the other customers. "You need to take care of them, too?"_

_"That's not what I was paid for," Athena replied as she downed the rest of her drink._

_"Yeah, but you don't want Springs knowing what you've been up to. Last few nights you were lucky enough that the bar was almost empty, but I'm pretty sure you don't want witnesses."_

_"That guy over there's too drunk to have noticed anything."_

_The drunk guy began to snore._

_"Point taken," the bartender agreed. "What about the woman with the beer?"_

_"I'm her employer," the woman with the beer replied. She reached into her pocket and tossed Athena a huge wad of cash. "I like your style, Gladiator. Much more efficient than Finch and Kroger."_

_Athena fingered the cash. Then she took out a few bills and handed them to the bartender. "You're not going to tell her, are you?"_

_"Springs is a good person," the bartender replied, looking at the cash. "I wouldn't want to hurt her."_

_"That's what I figured."_

_The bartender handed the bills back to Athena. "You don't need to buy my silence. But I do have to ask you one question."_

_"Go ahead."_

_"Do _you_ want to hurt _her_?"_

* * *

"Athena?"

"Hmm? Yeah, that's all I did."

"Well then that's all I need to hear."

Athena drifted off to sleep, content with the fact that her girlfriend would never have to know the things she did to support the two of them.

* * *

Janey craved the moments when she relaxed under the covers with Athena. It gave her a sense of peace, one you couldn't get on the moon, where the constant fear of Kraggons or bandits plagued you every waking moment. Falling asleep was the easiest task when her girlfriend was lying there next to her.

But she didn't go back to sleep. Instead, she just stared at the ceiling, clutching the Athena tightly. She would hold her there until morning, when the Gladiator would wake up, ask to be released from the grip, and would join Janey on the walk to work, maybe to buy some breakfast. It would be a normal day. But tonight was not going to be a normal night.

She had no evidence of it. Odds were the former Lance Assassin destroyed and eliminated all proof. But no matter what they had learned from their talk, what Athena promised her, somehow she knew. That on this night, right here, lying next to her, Athena had lied again.


	5. Epilogue

Nisha sat at her desk in Lynchwood. It had been an overnight trip back to the town she ruled with an iron fist. The trip was plagued by bumpy roads and some guy who had come down with a loud cough. Nisha had gotten no sleep, though she did get a blood rush from shooting the man. Now she wanted to just rest and do nothing.

Only now she had a problem. The Vault Hunters had come to Lynchwood. They'd destroyed the train, robbed the bank, and killed some her best men. And Jack had made it clear he wanted them dead.

Now that she had a quiet moment to herself, she decided to take a look at the injuries she had sustained in the fight. She unwrapped the makeshift bandage around her arm.

"Springs, you bogan shit," she laughed quietly as she looked at the damage. This was bad. Not a fatal injury by any means. But she wouldn't be able to fight like a pro.

This was a problem, because she needed the Vault Hunters dead.

Something Athena had said the day before was still bothering her.

* * *

_"You know, one can only kill so many innocent people before they start to grow a conscience about it."_

* * *

The security feeds showed the Vault Hunters were turning in a job at the bounty board: Brick's mission to destroy the bank.

Nisha twirled her pistol. Thinking for a moment, she aimed it at a target she'd left on the wall and fired off a single shot.

"Bullseye," she muttered. She pulled out an ECHO device and put a new mission onto the bounty board. She could see the Vault Hunters' confusion at the new bounty that had popped up right after they turned in the old one. With a wry smile, she slid the microphone in front of her.

_"You've robbed my bank, shot up my town, and destroyed my train. I like you. Main street. Pistols at high noon. Come alone."_

She pulled down the hammer on the gun. Today was not the day she would grow a conscience.


End file.
